Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the World English Bible, ebible.org, all rights reserved)

“Yahweh visited Sarah as he had said, and Yahweh did to Sarah as he had spoken. Sarah conceived, and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham called his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac. Abraham circumcised his son, Isaac, when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Abraham was one hundred years old when his son, Isaac, was born to him.”
(Genesis 21:1-5)

Sarah didn’t get to participate in the promise between Abraham and God. Sarah needed to interact with God by trusting in Him. If she hadn’t it never would have come to pass. Sarah chose to trust in God’s promise, in spite of her original skepticism. Because she laid a hold of that promise and put her trust in Him, it came to pass (Hebrews 11:11).

Abraham was a hundred years old and Sarah was ninety when she got pregnant. It wasn’t a normal thing for them to have natural children (Genesis 18:12). They both trusted God’s word to them and because of that trust they were able to enter into the fulfillment of the promise. It was by their TRUST that this came to pass (Romans 4:18-20).

Abraham (and Sarah) were not perfect in their walk with God. They gave into fear at times. They went with their own thinking at times. But at their foundation, they were both followers of God and trusters in Him. Abraham did not waver when it came to commands. God instructed him in circumcision (Genesis 17:10-11) and Abraham was faithful to follow through. We can see here that it wasn’t a one-off at the time it was given, but something Abraham was faithful to continue performing.

Abraham was a hundred years old when this happened and he lived until he was a hundred and seventy-five (175). Abraham was a hundred and sixty years old (160) when his grandchildren Jacob and Esau were born.

The sage Malbim writes: ‘And the Lord took account of Sarah: I have already explained in Ayelet HaShachar that when the noun precedes the verb, it indicates that the thing was earlier than this. So [here] it means to say that still before Avimelekh took her, she was already pregnant from Avraham. And that is according to the opinion of Rabbi Chama in the Midrash that she gave birth in seven truncated months. For that is why, at the time Avimelekh took her, her fetus was not noticeable. But if she gave birth in nine months, they would say that she became pregnant from Avimelekh and that she gave birth in seven truncated months. But the opinion that says she gave birth in nine month reasons that God took account of Sarah after the story with Avimelekh, and that the story with Avimelekh was ten or eleven months before her giving birth. So they would have known [this way] also that she did not get pregnant from Avimelekh. And that which the noun comes before the verb (making it past perfect) is to teach the connection of the deed [that was mentioned before it]: That by way of his praying for Avimelekh, the Lord took account of Sarah – like the matter that they said (Bava Kamma 92a), “Whoever prays for his fellow, when he himself also is in need of that very thing, will be answered first.” And he called: Behold, God commanded Avraham, “your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will name him Yitzchak” (Genesis 17:19) – and he had to implement this immediately on the day that he was born; and He commanded him to circumcise him on the eighth day. So Avraham implemented, “And he called his son’s name,” immediately; and he circumcised, “when he was eight days old” (Genesis 21:4). And about both of them, it stated, “as the Lord had commanded him.” And it stated, “that was born to him, to which Sarah had borne to him” – as it was written, “your wife Sarah will bear you a son” – that is to say, a son who will be the heart and treasure that will be descended from you. As this could only be from the righteous woman, Sarah.’

The Torah: A Women’s Commentary writes: ‘יהוהnow remembered Sarah. God had spoken with Abraham (17:16, 21; 18:10) and, through the “messengers,” with Sarah (18:10) about the forthcoming child; but God remembers only Sarah here. she became pregnant and bore a son. After much discussion about this event (15:4; 17:16–19, 21; 18:9–15), Isaac’s conception and delivery are reported in just three Hebrew words. to Abraham. The text is explicit here that the father is Abraham because the preceding episode with Abimelech might raise a doubt about the father’s identity. Abraham names the child “Isaac,” a name that means “he laughs.” Usually in the Bible it is the mother who names her son.’

The sage Rav Hirsch writes: ‘V. 3. הנולד לו אשר ילדה לו שרה, referring to both facts:— that to him, at the advanced age of a hundred years, still a son was born, and that Sarah at ninety years, still, and only then, became a mother, and especially having regard to all that was dependent on it, the birth of this child was צחק, something, according to ordinary natural conditions, rather laughable (see above on Ch. 17,17). So, when Abraham called his son יצחק these facts were vividly in his mind.’